Follow these guidelines for simple and consistent referencing and attribution that respects intellectual property and supports good user experience.
Why we reference
There are 2 reasons we include acknowledgements in our content:
- to give credit to the source of a creative work, information or idea (attribution)
- to help audiences access the original source (referencing or citation).
How to reference on nsw.gov.au
Our referencing style is simple and minimal, to fit the nsw.gov.au tone of voice and the digital context.
- To credit artists and photographers, use the ‘image credit’ field when adding or editing the media file in Drupal. For details, see our Image component guidelines.
- When referencing information or ideas from elsewhere, including legislation:
- Do not extensively summarise or replicate information.
- Give a short overview or excerpt, followed by a link to the original source.
- Link at the end of the paragraph or at the end of the page as a related links section, for logical flow of information.
- Only use formal, academic-style referencing when the content demands it. For example, in the html version of a parliamentary report. We use the documentary-note style, with a superscript numeral as a reference marker in the text and a full reference at the bottom of the page.
For details, see the Australian Government Style Manual.
Example 1. Paraphrased bite of information, with link at the bottom of the page.
Example 2. High level summary linking through to authoritative source.
Example 3. Documentary-note style referencing, used sparingly on the site.
When to credit or reference
Citing sources of information and ideas
To respect intellectual property rights, always cite and link to the source when you make explicit reference to the ideas, advice or recommendations of an expert person or organisation.
For other types of information outside your organisation's domain expertise:
- Only include the info if it's useful straight away.
- Include only as much detail as the audience needs to complete the task or move to the next step. Then link to the authoritative source. This also makes it easier to keep information current and correct.
- For useful background or contextual information that doesn't directly support the task at hand, use 'related links'.
Crediting photographers and artists
- Many of the visual assets we use on nsw.gov.au do not need credits. This includes stock photography and graphics created by our brand team.
- Uploading your own images? Make sure you know the accreditation requirements and follow them.
- For photographs of artwork, always include the name of the artist and artwork in the credit field.
For more information on copyright and image attribution, see our Image selection guidelines.
Need any more help?
If you have any questions, or require assistance with anything mentioned on this article, submit a request via the webform.